Liquid dispenser



June 29, 1965 D. F. CORSETTE ET AL LIQUID DISPENSER Filed Jan. 23, 1962 c L W.

INVENTORS,

55x C Come/05E 0006245 F. 60/?55775 ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,191,814 LIQUID DISPENSER Douglas F. Corsette, Los Angeles, and Rex C. Cooprider, Downey, Calif., assignors to The Drackett Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Jan. 23, 1962, Ser. No. 168,068 '1 Claim. (Cl. 222384) This invention relates to improvements in a pump dispenser unit adapted for association with a liquid container, in the manner exemplified in our copending application, Serial No. 122,585, filed July 7, 1961, now Patent No. 3,128,018. The invention relates particularly to improvements in the pump barrel and the means for fixedly supporting same in the dispensing opening of the container. In prior such devices, it has been customary (as in our aforesaid application) to utilize a collar disposed concentrically around the barrel and within an opening through the container cap, the collar being fixedly connected to the containercap to provide a support for the pump, and

3,191,814 Patented June 29, 1965 tion, and the manner which a portion of the upper end of the barrel is swaged after insertion of the barrel to provide a stop shoulder overlying the plunger to limit its upward movement.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view in elevation, of the upper end portion of the pump barrel as seen from a location within the depending skirt of the cap. Referring now in detail to the accompanying drawing, the pump comprises basically a barrel 10, which is formed as an integral and unitary structure of generally hollow cylindrical configuration defining an interior cylindrical also being provided with a flange extending between the cap and the container neck to afford a seal. Thus, it is necessary thatthe separately formed collar and pump barrel be assembled to each other, as well as to the container cap in a series of assembly steps.

It is a primary object of the instant invention to. reduce the number of parts of a dispensing pump structure of the class in which the pump is fixedly connected to the container cap, whereby to achieve the advantages of simplification, economy of assembly and construction, while also providing a more rugged and trouble free structure than was heretofore provided by the prior artwith its more numerous component parts.

The foregoing primary objects are achieved by a novel and simplified arrangement in which the aforesaid collar is completely omitted, and the barrel and cap are formed as integral and homogeneous portions of a single molded or cast structure in which the scaling function with the container formerly fulfilled by the collar is now fulfilled by portions of the cap itself.

It is a further primary object to provide such an arrangement utilizing a snap-fitting cap incorporating an improved sealing feature.

In addition to the advantages above mentioned, such a simplified construction results in a structure involving fewer joints or interconnections between the assembled parts, and since such joints must be formed in a fluid tight manner, inevitably results in a structure which is less subject to leakage in shipment and handling than was possible in earlier devices.

To promote an understanding of the invention, reference will now be made to the preferred embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will, nevertheless, be appreciated that no limitations of the scope of the invention are thereby intended, and that such further modificationsand alterations are'contemplated as will normally occur to one skilled in the art to. which the invention relates. p

In the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings: 7 FIGURE 1 represents a vertical sectional view in an axial plane through a pump structure incorporating the features of the invention; the discharge spout and the suction tube of the said structure being broken away in part.

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary view in the same plane as FIGURE 1 of the upper end portion of the pump barrel, including its associated cap portion, same being shown prior to assembly with the pump plunger, and showing in broken lines both the pump plunger in its assembled relapump chamber 11 and having a suction tube 12 depending from and communicating with its lower end to draw liquid into the chamber from a container, generally designated as C in FIGURE 1, with which the pump is associated. Formed as an integral and homogeneous portion of the barrel 1!) at its upper end, is a container cap generally designated 14. It will be seen that the cap 14 comprises a generally horizontally extending annular top 16 through which the hollow interior of the pump barrel opens upwardly for reception of the pump plunger 13. Thus, there is defined a fluid passage extending completely through the barrel 10, including the cylindrical chamber 11 of uniform diameter between its ends, together with a relatively larger diameter bore 22 opening upwardly through the cap and internally threaded as at 24.

As will be seen in FIGURE 2, prior to its permanent assembly with the plunger 18, the end of the barrel at its juncture with the cap 16 terminates in an upwardly presented annular shoulder 26', a portion of which, following insertion of the plunger piston 28 into the bore 22 and chamber 11, is swaged inwardly by axial pressure exerted thereon from above to provide the radially inwardly directed annularshoulder 26, as shown in FIG- URES 1 and 2, projecting inwardly above the outer periphery of the piston 28 to limit the upward movement of the piston and prevent its inadvertent withdrawal from the barrel.

Such swaging action, for the purpose of providing the shoulder 26, may be performed by a suitable swaging tool of annular configuration pressed downwardly against the shoulder 26' and around the plunger 18 after its insertion within the barrel. The downward pressure produced by such. a swaging tool may be resisted by an annular anvil member concentrically receiving the barrel of the pump and having teeth similar to 30 meshing thereto, abutting axially against the enlarged castellated or toothed portion 30. As described in our copending application, the anvil member may have teeth corresponding to'3ll meshing therewith to maintain the barrel it against rotation while the plunger structure is rotated for threaded engagement with threads 24.

It will be seen that the reciprocating pump structure in FIGURE 1 comprises both the plunger 18 and a separately formed and applied discharge head 32, which is secured over the upper end of the plunger as by means of the snap connections 34 after the aforementioned swaging operation has occurred.

The discharge head 32 preferably is provided with an upwardly presented button or finger piece 36 so that reciprocation may be manually imparted to the entire plunger structure for the purpose of actuating the pump. The plunger discharge head 32 will be seen to have a downwardly opening recess 38 of cylindrical configuration for snug reception of the upper end of the plunger 18. The plunger will be understood to be of tubular configuration having bores 40 and 42 respectively extending completely through the upper and lower ends respectively to establish communication between the recess 38 and the suction tube 12, and also it will be seen that the recess 38 communicates with a suitable dis- Q charge passage 44, which may be defined by a discharge spout, spray passage or other discharge device designated generally by the reference character 46.

The plunger structure per se, as herein described does not constitute a part of the instant invention, but merely is representative of one of a number of plunger structures suitable for utilization with the invention. The illustrated plunger structure and its mode of cooperation with the other components is more fully described in our copen-ding application above identified. The plunger, as illustrated, is provided with a valve cage 48 through which the bore 40 extends, the cage terminating at its lower end in a tapered valve seat 50 on which is movably positioned a usual ball check valve 52 arranged to permit only upward flow of fluid through the plunger. To the same end, there is provided at the lower end of the plunger chamber 11 of the barrel, a check valve 54 normally seating by gravity against an upwardly directed valve seat 56. The operation of the two check valves 52 and 54 incident to the reciprocation of the plunger 18 is in acordance with well understood principles, and is merely an exemplification of conventional practice. The spring 60 compressed between the plunger 18 and the lower end of the plunger chamber 11 functions in usual manner to resiliently project the plunger upwardly on its return stroke following each downward stroke resulting from finger pressure on the fingerpiece 36.-

Inasmuch as it is desirable to provide a highly eflicient fluid tight shipping seal, such as will prevent leakage of the fluid from the container through the pump structure, the invention includes means for locking the plunger in its depressed condition, and the arrangement is such that the plunger, when thus depressed, transmits a depressing pressure to the check valve 54 tending to maintain it firmly on its seat 56- In order to thus maintain the plunger depressed, there is provided around the lower end of the discharge head 32 a somewhat enlarged diameter cylindrical portion 62 formed with an external screw thread 64 for engagement with the internal thread 24. The enlarged portion 62 terminates in a downwardly directed annular seal or skirt 66 adapted for engagement with the shoulder 26 to provide a seal at this point, such as will prevent escape of any fluid entering the barrel through the usual breather openings 68.

For securing the cap 16 on a container, as exemplified by the element C, of which the dispensing neck or spout portion only is illustrated in broken lines in FIGURE 1, the interior of the depending cap skirt 70 is formed to define an upwardly directed snap shoulder 72 of circular configuration for locking engagement beneath outwardly projecting annular rib or lip 74 around the upper end of the container. By virtue of the fact that the cap will normally be formed of a resiliently flexible or stretchable material, such as a suitable polyethylene plastic, it will be seen that the skirt 70 may be stretched while passing downwardly around the neck bead 74, and will resume its original diameter to snap the shoulder 72 into locking engagement beneath the head as soon as the tapered interior portion 76 of the skirt passes downwardly beyond the bead 74.

A fluid tight connection between the cap and the container' neck is insured in the present instance through the provision of the depending annular sealing rib 80 formed integrally with the top of the cap and projecting axially downwardly therefrom. The scaling rib 80 will be seen to be concentric to the pump barrel 10, as Well as to the cap 16, and will be medially spaced between the barrel and the depending skirt 70 of the cap. The spacing between the rib 30 and the skirt 70 is just suflicient that depressed condition as determined by the interengaged threads 24 and 64 in FIGURE 1, the valve 54 will be seated to prevent upward movement of fluid from the container through the suction tube 12. The engagement between the shoulders 26' and 66 at this time will prevent upward passage of fluid between the pump barrel and plunger from a location above the plunger. Also, if desired, as an added preventative against leakage, there may be provided on the plunger an outwardly projecting radial sealing flange 84 adapted for sealing engagement within the cap opening 22.

It will be seen that when the plunger is rotated relative to the barrel and cap in a direction to release the interengaged threads 24 and 64, the spring 60 will automatically project the plunger 18 upwardly to an operative position in which it may be reciprocated by repeated finger pressures on the fingerpiece 36. As thus actuated, it will function in the manner of a conventional reciprocating pump, as will be readily apparent from the foregoing description.

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

In a liquid dispenser of the hand actuated reciprocal pump type, a tubular pumpbarrel defining a pump chamber of uniform diameter, a cap including a top extending radially outwardly from the barrel, a cylindrical skirt depending from said top concentrically to and spaced radially from the barrel, means on the skirt for securing the cap on a container, said cap being formed with an internally threaded central circular bore of larger diameter than said pump chamber, said bore being concentric to said skint and radially inwardly spaced therefrom, the upper end of said pump barrel being directly integrally connected with said cap around the lower end of said bore with its pump chamber communicating and axially aligned with said bore, sealing means integrally connected to the top of the cap in radially spaced concentric relation to said pump barrel in position for sealing engagement with the neck of a container to which said cap is applied, an axially upwardly presented annular shoulder being formed in the barrel between said bore and the pump chamber, a plunger being disposed in said chamber 'for reciprocation along and rotation about the axis of the chamber, the upper end of said plunger projecting externally of the chamber and bore through the said bore, said upper end having thereon a discharge head of larger diameter than said chamber, said head being formed with external threads for cooperation with said internally threaded bore, and having an uially downwardly directed annular seal for operative sealing engagement with said annular shoulder.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 664,898 1/01 Safiord 222-385 1,849,161 3/32 Westwood 222 3s5 1,919,173 7/33 Schutt 222-385 1,982,497 11/34 Cotchett 222 3ss 2,266,270 12/41 Roth 21541 3,128,018 4/64 Corsette 61 al. 222 321 LOUIS J. DEMBO, Primary Examiner.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Examiner. 

